Electric fuel pumps have been widely used to supply fuel from a supply tank to an internal combustion engine. In automotive applications an electric fuel pump is generally mounted within a gasoline fuel supply tank however, in some non-automotive applications, such as motorcycles, the tank size or shape makes it impractical to mount the pump within the fuel tank. Thus, in these situations the fuel pump must be mounted externally of the fuel tank. In other applications, such as in marine engines, the fuel pump is generally mounted externally of the gasoline fuel tank with a secondary pump used to provide fuel from the fuel tank to the main fuel pump.
Prior fuel pumps mounted externally of the fuel tank have been mounted in modules constructed to receive fuel from the fuel tank whereupon that fuel is drawn through the fuel pump and delivered under pressure from the fuel pump to the operating engine. Typically, in these systems, if a fuel pressure regulator is provided it is disposed on the fuel raii adjacent to the engine and it returns excess fuel from the fuel rail to the fuel tank. Having passed through the fuel rail adjacent to the operating engine, the fuel returned from the fuel pressure regulator is at an elevated temperature and when it is discharged into the fuel tank it generates a significant amount of fuel vapor in the fuel tank which is undesirable. Further, additional assembly and fuel line connections are required to connect the separate fuel pump module and fuel pressure regulator in the fuel system.